Dark Energon
by transformersnewfan
Summary: AU: Megatron recalls his drug use and regrets it.


This was inspired by reading "Never Again" by Darkeyes17, which can be found here:

s/7071463/1/Never-again

 _This is a flashback of my longer Transformers Fanfiction, "The International Incident."_

 _It was almost eight months ago now._

 _At the time, the Decepticon had lived on Earth for less than a year and were still trying to sustain their footing._

 _It began when Megatron had gone back to Iacon alone for a meeting with Shockwave. The Cannon-Former explained that he had been contacted by an informant, an Autobot living in Kaon that was a Neutral, about a prototype weapon called the Negavator that the Autobots on Earth were testing with the human military._

 _When the Decepticon Leader had a meeting with the older mech, an uncle of Red Alert, he offered him a sample of a chemical concoction he'd been experimenting with._

 _He called it 'Dark Energon,' a mix of High-Grade Energon and an Earth drug known as Cocaine._

" _It'll make ya stronger in battle," the red and white mech offered, "Just don't overdo it…makes ya all jittery-like."_

 _The Decepticon Leader wondered to himself but didn't share, if Red Alert himself used the stuff, considering his reputed bouts with paranoia. After another moment's hesitation, he accepted the sample. Shockwave didn't know about the transaction._

 _Well, it worked for a while: Megatron was indeed a better fighter, winning several battles with the Autobots—almost singlehandedly—and breaking into human buildings with ease on Energon raids, tearing into storage facilities as if they were made of wet paper bags._

 _But within weeks, the paranoia started. He accused Soundwave of working for the Autobots. When the Tapedeck denied it, Megatron punched him in the faceplates, knocking the big blue Decepticon to the ground._

" _You ever strike me again, and I'm outta here," Soundwave snarled as he readjusted his mouthplate._

" _You ever confer with Jazz on my Base again, and you're outta here!" the ex-Gladiator spat._

 _Soundwave sighed, "That was Ravage, you dolt!"_

 _Megatron huffed and went to his quarters for another hit of the drug._

 _Later, after dark, Starscream met with the Tapedeck in secret in the Control Room._

" _Soundwave, he's getting worse," the Air Commander insisted, "We can't allow him to keep spiraling downwards."_

 _Soundwave: "I know, I know…"_

 _Starscream: "The other day, he nearly led me and my squadron straight into an army fleet! When I confronted him about it, he thought he had told me to lead them East when he actually said WEST! I'm positive of it!"_

 _Soundwave: "…And tonight, he punched me and accused me of conspiring with Jazz."_

" _Oh Primus, Soundwave," Star shook his helm, "We need to get rid of this Dark Energon! And tonight!"_

" _Alright," the Tapedeck agreed, "I know where he keeps his cache of drugs." He motioned for the Seeker to follow him._

 _The two Officers went to the Energon Storeroom, and Soundwave pulled out the cover on one of the air conditioning vents. "Here," he showed the other as he pulled out the packages of cocaine bricks, "He mixes this stuff with regular High-Grade to make Dark Energon."_

 _Starscream helped him gather up all the packages, "So all we have to do is destroy this, and it'll be over."_

 _They had to think of how to accomplish this safely._

 _Starscream: "Dump it into the garbage shoot?"_

 _Soundwave: "And kill all the fish in the ocean? As soon as the Navy sees that, they'll blame us!"_

 _The red and white flyer shrugged, not knowing what to do next, "But, if we burn it, we'll probably all be affected."_

 _Finally, Soundwave came up with an answer, "Put it all in the medical waste containers."_

 _He and Starscream did so immediately._

 _Soundwave: "I'll depose of these storage units at a nearby hospital on the surface first thing tomorrow morning…"_

" _No! Soundwave, you have to do it tonight!" Starscream insisted, "When he comes down here later and sees it's gone, that's the first place he'll look! And when he finds it, he'll slag us both!"_

" _Yeah, you're right," the Tapedeck agreed, dumping the metal boxes into a burlap sack, "Stay on Base, I'll be back in an hour."_

 _Well, while the Tapedeck was away on his errand, Starscream watched television with his brothers in their quarters. But before Soundwave returned, Megatron had emerged from his own quarters and wondered into the basement._

 _The former Gladiator had been taking Dark Energon and sleeping on and off. The effectiveness of the intoxicant was becoming less effective as time went on, and he seemed to need more and more in order to achieve his desired 'high.'_

 _To his horror, his stash had been cleaned out! He became enraged beyond what was the norm for him in his drug-impaired state._

" _Soundwave," he snarled, running up the stairs. He bolted into the Control Room, ready to murder the Tapedeck, but no one was in there._

" _SOUNDWAVE!" he called him on his Comm.-Link, "WHERE THE PIT ARE YOU?!"_

" _Out," was the answer, "I'll be back in fifteen minutes." And cut his friend off without explanation, making the ex-Gladiator seethe with fury._

 _Megatron would only remember vaguely the following chain of events: He was hollering in the Control Room at mechs that weren't there; babbling about the state of affairs in Europe, about the human late night talk-show host David Letterman, and whatnot, and then at same point Starscream had entered through the French doors, and the Decepticon Leader groggily saying, "Hey Kiddo," and Starscream being glad to see him, and then…_

 _The Seeker said something; Megatron said something; Megs couldn't remember exactly what was said: Starscream let it slip that he and Soundwave had disposed of the drugs, and the next thing the former professional fighter and two-time Champion in the World Gladiatorial Games of Cybertron knew, he was in a roaring rage and attacking his Second-in-Command, the beautiful flyer he was in love with._

 _Megatron punched him in the jaw, nearly shattering it. He grabbed Starscream by a wing and tossed him into the corner like he was a ragdoll. He smashed the Seeker's canopy glass, and, worst of all, ripped out a handful of his wires._

 _The Decepticon Leader was snorting and grunting like a bull seeing a red cape. He was going to kill Starscream, and he would have too, right there in the Decepticon Control Room, if Soundwave hadn't returned when he did, and bashed the former Gladiator in the back of the helm with a pipe-like weapon, knocking him offline._

 _Soundwave dragged him out by his pedes to his quarters and left him on the floor. By then several Decepticons had gathered in the hallway, and Soundwave ordered them to return to their quarters, saying there was a threat that needed to be contained._

 _The twins were yelling, demanding an explanation, with their Creator telling them to stay back. Ravage came forth instead, and Soundwave decided he was old enough to know at least PART of the situation, telling him to lock Megatron's door and don't let him come out._

 _Soundwave collected the brutalized Seeker and his broken pieces into his arms and rushed him to the Med-Bay. Starscream was whimpering and keening the whole way there, sobbing about what Megatron had done._

 _At one point in between repair work, Soundwave got on his Comm.-Link and lied about the events, saying there was a suspected Komodo Dragon loose on the Base, and that there had been an attack in the Control Room and ordered the entire Decepticon Underwater Base to be on lockdown until the Komodo Dragon was captured._

 _He was able to repair Starscream, replacing the cockpit glass and the delicate wires beneath. He did the best he could with the dents in the Seeker's faceplates, icing them down before bringing the flyer out of statis._

 _Starscream onlined screaming in fear, thrashing around and looking in every direction for Megatron._

" _Relax Starscream," the Tapedeck gently pressed the Seeker back down on the medical berth, "He's not going to hurt you anymore. I promise you."_

 _Starscream sobbed his spark out into Soundwave's broad chestplates, keening about how Megatron had hurt him and how he could never trust him again and how he would leave the Decepticons. Soundwave didn't argue; he just listened, he was an excellent listener._

 _Poor Star couldn't calm himself down. He was in a state of sheer panic; traumatized by the attack. He said he couldn't stay in the Med-Bay because Megatron would come in and strangle him._

" _Ravage is guarding his quarters," Soundwave tried to explain, "If he moves, I'll know."_

 _Starscream's emotions veered heavily between raw fear of the former Gladiator he'd been in love with and determination to keep his titles and statue in the Decepticon Army,_

 _Starscream: "I-I was a-able t-to b-block m-my T-Trine B-Bond b-before h-he b-beat m-me…i-if t-they f-find o-out, t-they'll n-never w-want m-me t-to s-stay h-here…"_

 _Finally, Soundwave told the Seeker that if he no longer felt safe at their Earth Base, he could arrange for him to transfer to one of their Cybertron-based projects. He would still be the Second-in-Command and Air Commander, but not have to deal with Megatron faceplates to faceplates._

 _Since he didn't want to stay in the Med-Bay overnight, the Tapedeck walked him back to his quarters, only to get there and have Starscream start keening, "No, no, I can't! It's not safe here! If he wakes up and tries to kill me again, this is the first place he'll look for me!"_

 _Soundwave: "Fine, you can stay with me or your brothers."_

 _The red and white Seeker finally sobbed he wanted his Trine, "B-But d-don't t-tell t-them a-anything…"_

 _For his part, Ravage watched the incident but made no indications as to what he was thinking._

 _The Decepticons stationed on the Base were all inside their respective quarters. Starscream clung to Soundwave like a frightened sparkling as they walked down the long corridor past the many rooms and housing units. Thundercracker and Skywarp's quarters were the furthest from the Med-Bay, and closest to the elevator to the Tower, with Starscream's Second-In-Command quarters being close to the Control Room and in between Megatron's and Soundwave's quarters. All the other Cons' quarters were in between._

 _Soundwave, with his high-definition audials, could hear the televisions in everyone's quarters: Astrotrain was watching a boxing match on HBO; Dirge was watching 'The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson', and based on the vocals the Tapedeck could make out, human actor Robin Williams was the guest. Scrapper and Hook were watching some rerun of a medical drama, and finally, it sounded like Skywarp was watching an old rerun of 'Soul Train,' with the darker Seeker singing along—badly—to Kurtis Blow's song, 'The Breaks.'_

" _I mean it doesn't make sense to old guys like me," Don Cornelius told his guest, Kurtis Blow, a young rapper in the up-in-coming Hip-Hop music scene, after his performance, "I mean I don't understand why they love it so much."_

" _Oh, burn…" Skywarp was heard talking to his television, "Seriously, Cornelius! Don't you realize this guy's the next big thing?!"_

" _Eh? I wasn't listening…" was Thundercracker's distracted response. It was evident that the blue Seeker had been engrossed in his datapad when he answered the door still holding it._

 _But the two brothers dropped everything when they were met by their distressed Trine Leader as he ran into their arms sobbing like a lost sparkling._

" _What the pit happened to him?!" TC demanded as Skywarp held Starscream tightly._

 _Soundwave lied again, briefly explaining about the escaped zoo animal that had somehow made it onto their Base and how it had attacked Starscream in the Control Room, and to "just stay in your quarters and barricade the door." He didn't have to say it twice._

 _The Tapedeck headed back to Megatron's quarters now: Ravage was still guarding the door and reported there were no indications that the Decepticon Leader was currently online._

 _Rumble and Frenzy were asking through their Bond if their Creator knew what had happened to Starscream, since their quarters' were next to each other and they could hear the Seeker sobbing. Soundwave only semi-lied, telling them "The Komodo Dragon attacked him. Stay in your room, I haven't found it yet." He also had them double-bolt the door._

 _Thankfully, Laserbeak was away on assignment watching the Autobots. He would have seen through the lie instantly._

 _Soundwave reloaded his Beretta and then opened the Control Room's doors, and finally positioned his chair to face the entrance of Megatron's quarters. If Megs came out and was in any way out of control, he was prepared to shoot him. He knew his friend wouldn't want to live this way._

 _Ravage was lying down in front of Megatron's door, deducing exactly what was going on now. There was no Komodo Dragon._

 _So from 11:00 P.M. to around 4:40 A.M. in the morning, just before dawn broke, they kept their positions. Ravage had long fallen into recharge, and Soundwave didn't know when he had nodded off. The Base was so quiet you could have heard a pin drop._

 _Megatron woke up after being out cold for more than seven hours, totally sober. His processor felt like there was a human using a jackhammer on it. "Ugh, slag…" he grumbled, "What happened?" He opened the door and stepped over Ravage easily enough, groggily aware that the Cat had fallen into recharge on guard duty, and walked weakly into the Control Room._

 _Megatron: "Before you say anything, I just wanna say I'm so sorry…" he walked straight towards the gun-brandishing mech, knowing he wasn't going to shoot him, "I'm sorry for the past few months. I thought I could handle it…I thought I could handle anything, really."_

 _He took a seat in one of the swivel chairs, "When I was in the Arena, I never did drugs. It was against the rules. They would've stripped you of your win if they found you were doing anything," he continued rambling on about an era he felt most at home talking about as Soundwave slowly lowered his pistol, "And not just the match that they caught you using, oh no…they'd strip you of ALL your wins! Know why? Because they couldn't have known when you started using, so they disqualified your whole record."_

 _Ravage raised his helm; Soundwave signaled him that the situation was under control._

 _Megs looks up and saw he still had Soundwave's attention, "Soundwave? Did I ever tell you how I was declared the winner in the 3rd round of the Kaon Championship?"_

 _The Tapedeck shrugged, "It was a default, wasn't it?" it was easier for him to talk about this stuff too, rather than the proverbial mammal in the room._

" _Right," Megatron nodded, "It was my only default victory. It didn't even FEEL like a win, Soundwave…always felt, I dunno, HALLOW somehow." He looked out the bay window at the still pre-dawn darkness, "I trained for that match like every other match; I was ready. I knew I could win. We drove down to Kaon, Shockwave, my Creators and I. My Creators were at every one of my fights." He sighed and shook his helm, "And we got to the Arena, to the visitors' locker room…" he rambled, "See, all the visiting fighters went to the visitors' locker room." He paused before continuing, "We waited there. The match was scheduled for Two o'clock…and then, Two o'clock came, and my Creators were in their seats in the front row…I always got them the best seats…and then the officials told us they had, I don't remember, some kind of sag or whatever. Shock and I were thinking, fifteen minutes maybe."_

 _Soundwave just listened._

 _Megatron: "And then, two-thirty came, then three came, and then three-thirty came, and there we were, still waiting!" He let a chuckle escape his sad vocalizer. "I mean, here I am, holding my scimitar ready to tear this mech's helm off…after two hours, I was pacing around dragged it across the dirt."_

" _Bet Shockwave didn't take the development well," the Tapedeck joked, knowing how impatient the Cannon-Former could be._

" _Oh, you have no idea!" Megatron laughed, "He was going back and forth every ten minutes asking what the pit's going on, with his British Accent going nuts. By the end even I couldn't understand him, he was so mad." He turned more seriously, "So um, anyways, I think it was around four thirty, close to five…two mechs came in and told me the judges declared me the winner. I didn't know what to think. I was asking what happened to my opponent, I mean, I'm thinking, 'Did somebody shoot him? Huh?', and…eventually, a couple months later, we found out he was caught with performance-enhancing supplements."_

 _Megs got up and paced, "He was stripped of all his previous titles too, all the guys he defeated were told they were gonna be considered the winners of those bouts now." He snort laughed, "I got my medal in the mail, Soundwave. No battle, no roaring crowds chanting my name, no victory speech to tell Tarn that their hometown mechling made good, it was just…blah." He sighed again, "He was banned from professional Gladiator matches for life. Oh sure, his manager appealed the decision…think his name was Whirl, but I could be wrong. You'd haveta ask Shockwave about that. He knew him pretty well. They went to school together and used to see each other around town."_

 _He knew he was going to have to address the real subject matter sooner or later, "Never thought I'd be one of those guys, Soundwave. A drug user…A junkie lusting after his next hit."_

" _You're hardly a junkie," the Tapedeck offered._

" _Not YET, but…" Megs shook his helm as he paused to sit on the bay window's seat and look up at the waters, "That's the path this leads down…" He looked at his friend, "No more. I'm done. Never again…I'm never doing drugs again, Soundwave. I'll never touch them again."_

" _That's good," Soundwave nodded, still a bit leery._

 _Megatron laughed, "I know it'll be one helluva withdraw. But I deserve that."_

" _You'll survive," Soundwave shrugged as he stood, "You're pretty tough, Gladiator…"_

" _Right," Megatron sighed, "I'm sure my antics are the talk of the Autobot Base by now," Megatron continued, "I'm sure it's all over OUR Base by now…"_

" _Eh, I told the troops there was a Komodo Dragon loose on the Base and for everybody to stay in their quarters," the big mech mumbled, putting his Berretta back in its hip holster, "But…um, there's something else…" he didn't know how to tell his friend what he'd done._

 _Megatron knew that look; even under that visor and mouthplate, he knew that look._

 _Megatron: "I did something, didn't I?"_

 _Soundwave didn't answer at first, "It…could've been worse."_

" _Wait, wait a minute…" the Decepticon Leader got up and held his helm, "My processor's still glitching, but…I…" he looked at the Tapedeck for a long time; too long, "Did I…hit you?"_

 _Soundwave nodded, "Don't worry about it,"_

" _O-Oh my Primus…" he ran to him despite the growing helmache, "Oh God, Soundwave, I apologize…I-I had no memory of…"_

 _Soundwave: "Forget it, it's over…"_

" _I-I don't remember tonight, I don't remember being in the Control Room, I don't even remember after…" then he paused and remembered, optics bugging out, "STARSCREAM!" he ran to the corner, honestly expecting to find his Seeker's body there; he started looking around the room, spark racing._

" _He'll be okay," Soundwave said as he took hold of his friend's shoulders, "I took him to the Med-Bay and fixed everything; but he's going to—"_

 _Megatron bolted out of the room, racing to the Med-Bay._

 _Soundwave shouted out, "MEGS! Lemme finish!"_

 _Megatron tore into the Med-Bay and looked around in every direction. No Starscream; just Spectro Reflector cleaning the Energon off of some of Soundwave's tools; they clearly had just had a patient._

" _You didn't let me finish!" Soundwave spat as he came running in, "I was saying he's out of the Med-Bay, but he's leaving for Vos tomorrow morning."_

 _Megatron shook his helm, not understanding, "To get away from me?"_

 _Soundwave didn't answer._

 _The ex-Gladiator wanted to punch a wall in frustration, letting out a growl; it was at himself though, not the Tapedeck. Finally, he calmed himself enough and asked, "Can I apologize to him first?"_

 _The Tapedeck motioned for him to follow him._

" _He told me he's leaving for a while…" Soundwave continued as they walked back. "He's spending the night with his Trinemates."_

 _Shockwave knocked on their door, and Thundercracker peered at them though the chain and seemed to have moved a heavy piece of furniture in front of the door. His expression was unreadable._

" _Well, the Dragon's dead," the Tapedeck figured the blue Seeker knew the truth by now but said it anyways. It was appropriately metaphoric. "We just wanted to check on Starscream to make sure he's alright."_

 _TC's optics met Soundwave's as if to ask if they could trust Megatron._

" _I'm unarmed, Thundercracker," Megs mumbled in penance, "Can I just say goodbye before he leaves?"_

 _TC: "Okay, but DON'T attack him!" He shut the door again to unlatch the chain. Then they heard him moving the furniture away from the door. When he finally opened the door again, he was holding one of his Null-Rays._

 _Megatron was so hurt inside; he would never…well, he never will again. Not now that he was sober, "May I come in?" praying that the two protective brothers would let him apologize to his little Seeker._

 _The blue flyer nodded, stepping aside._

 _The place was in shambles: Their couch bed was folded out, but the sheets were all messed up, indicating that Starscream had probably been sleeping there for a while and perhaps woke up screaming._

 _Megs slowly walked by him to where the berths were; he saw only Skywarp, who was curled around a body pillow or a laundry bag or something; TC's berth was empty; Megs looked at TC, who motioned to where Skywarp lay._

 _Going a little closer and looking again, the 'laundry bag' was actually Starscream under a dark blanket with his legs pulled up to his chest. Only his blue pedes were peering out from under the bedding._

 _Skywarp onlined his optics, but refused to look at Megatron; his big muscular arms were holding his older Trine Leader protectively._

" _Star?" Megatron whispered as he approached the huddled Seekers. He reached out and touched Starscream's shoulder. The red and white flyer appeared to be in a deep recharge, most likely from a sedative or pain reliever._

 _Skywarp moved the blanket enough so that the Leader could see his faceplates, and see that Star had a nasty dent in his check where Megatron had nailed him with his famous left hook._

 _Megs dropped his jaw in shock…had he done this?_

 _Tears flowed from his optics; mouth agape. He leaned down close (over Skywarp) and whispered to his little Seeker: "Starscream, I'm so sorry…" Coolant tears falling as he choked back his sobs, "I…I'm…sorry…that…I…hurt…you…" he tried to put his left arm around him, wondering for a fleeting moment if his Second is even activated anymore or if Warp was holding a dead Transformer; but the black and purple Seeker shifted a little at Megs' touch and Starscream onlined his optics, showing that he was indeed still alive._

" _Starscream, I promise you…I'll never hurt you again. And I'll never touch drugs again…I swear it!" Megatron told him in a hushed vocal, "Never again…"_

" _Okay, time's up," TC interjected abruptly; to heck with rank around here._

 _Megs reluctantly pulled away from his Seeker, not wanting to start an argument, and left._

 _A few hours later, Soundwave was the only one in the Control Room as Starscream prepared to leave for Vos._

" _I call you when I get to the hotel," the Trine Leader was heard telling his two brothers in the hallway, "Remember, you both are in charge while I'm gone."_

 _Skywarp "Why do we haveta stay?"_

" _We've been over this, Warp," Star's tone was annoyed yet sad, "I don't want anyone else taking over as Air Commander. You two are the only ones I trust with my duties."_

 _Thundercracker was stern, "Aren't you gonna tell us what happened to you?"_

 _Starscream: "Um, I'll call you guys on the videophone when I get there, K?"_

 _TC blocked his way, "I'm not staying in his outfit if I find out he did that."_

" _TC, I need time to consider what we're gonna do now…" the red and white flyer sighed, "Please, just…do this for a few weeks?"_

 _There was a pause._

 _Starscream: "Please don't worry about me…"_

 _Thundercracker: "I can't help it, I'm the eldest…"_

 _Starscream: "It's Vos, nobody can harm me there…"_

 _He hugged his two brothers tightly before leaving for the Space Bridge, "Just stay here…do my job until I come back."_

 _Later, Soundwave received the report from Shockwave that Starscream had arrived there safely, and that the President was very excited about the Seeker joining him to supervise the Restoration Project of a historic hotel in downtown Vos._

" _I'm so delighted he's decided to assist me," the purple Cannon-Former wrote in the correspondence, "He knows Vos so much better than I do!"_

 _When Megatron woke up at 8:00 A.M., he found Soundwave at the Computer Consul and Rumble and Frenzy playing videogames._

 _Megatron: "Where will he go?"_

 _Soundwave: "Don't worry about him; worry about yourself!"_

 _So for the next three weeks, Megs went to an outpatient substance abuse treatment center in Kaon on Cybertron. He spent his mornings and evenings there, only coming home to Earth at night to recharge._

 _The councilors determined he wasn't a bad case, considering he was only using the junk for a couple of months and had never touched it during his past career as an athlete._

 _Throughout, Starscream stayed in Vos and didn't contact Megatron, talking only to his two brothers, who relayed any messages to the Command._

 _For his part, Soundwave blew hot and cold to his Leader. At first, he just told the former Gladiator to leave Starscream alone. Later though, he softened, saying only that Starscream was safe and that he was staying in a nice hotel in Vos._

 _One morning over breakfast, Frenzy asked, "Daddy, when is Starscream coming home?"_

 _Soundwave: "He's working Frenzy; he'll be home when the project is completed."_

 _After three weeks, Megatron completed the rehabilitation program and received a certificate. Some of the Decepticons threw him a party, but Megs just missed Starscream. He was disappointed the Seeker didn't come home immediately; Blitzwing made a toast, but Megs said sadly, "Nah, don't toast me for that, I should never have started doing drugs." TC and Warp didn't attend._

 _Later, after everyone went to bed, he asked Soundwave where was Starscream; Soundwave said he would call him in the morning._

 _The next day, Soundwave reported that he left a message for Starscream at the Grand Vosian Hotel, telling him that Megs is clean nowadays and faxed him a picture of the Leader's certificate._

 _Megatron: "AND?"_

 _Soundwave: "And…he replied back that he needs another week to see the completion of the Restoration Project."_

 _The Decepticon Leader just sighed, saddened._

 _One week later, Shockwave reported to them that the project was completed that day and that Starscream "is leaving Cybertron in the morning."_

 _Megatron shook his helm, "So what does that mean?"_

 _Shockwave, who knew nothing about the attack, shrugged, "I assume he's going back to Earth."_

 _After discussing everything, Soundwave agreed to give Megatron the address of the Grand Vosian Hotel and gave his blessing for his friend to go and apologize to the Seeker in person._

" _Tell him to come back to Earth," Soundwave mused, "Maybe if he hears it from you, he'll come home."_

 _From Iacon, poor Megatron took the train to Vos; then a hovercraft-taxi to downtown. He stopped at a gift shop—not knowing what to get—and bought a box of Energon treats as a present. He walked to the hotel. The hotel manager was Jonathan, the Vehicon Seeker we just met._

 _When he asked for Starscream's room, Jonathan replied, "I'm sorry sir, Starscream checked out over an hour ago."_

 _Inside, the ex-Gladiator was shattered, "Did he say where he was going?"_

 _Jonathan: "He said he was leaving Cybertron."_

 _Megatron, crushed, only mumbled, "Whaaa?" He didn't know where in the galaxy Star could have gone. He hailed another hovercraft-taxi and had the driver take him up and down the streets of Vos, looking everywhere for his Seeker, but he was long gone._

 _It was getting dark when Megs took the train back to Iacon and the Space Bridge; telling Shockwave's secretary that he was going back to Earth. By then he was inwardly sobbing and very worried._

 _He arrived back at the Decepticon Underwater Base on Earth, lost in thought, and walking right past the Rec. Room, where Starscream was playing with Soundwave's twins on the floor, showing them all the science toys he brought for them. Starscream saw him and got up to follow him._

 _The Decepticon Leader entered the Control Room, where Soundwave was at his usual place in front of the Computer Consul._

 _Soundwave: "Where've you been? I've been calling you on your Comm.-Link for over two hours!"_

 _Megatron just shook his helm, "He's gone…"_

 _Soundwave, knowing the truth, "What are you talking about?"_

" _I missed him by an hour," the Decepticon Leader mused as he paced around. "The guy at the hotel said he left Cybertron and didn't say anything else…"_

 _He didn't see Starscream hiding behind the door as he poured his spark out._

" _I've blown it, Soundwave," Megatron went on, "I had a real chance with him, AND I BLEW IT!"_

 _Soundwave: "Megatron…"_

 _Megatron: "He was not only the best Second-in-Command I could've ever dreamed of having, but…but more than that, Soundwave, I was in love with him. He had such a sharp processor, you could slice your hand! He was just trying to save me, save the Decepticons, I dunno, save me from myself…I-I've never done drugs before. All my years in the Arena, I mean, I never took performance enhancers, I was always clean…"_

 _Soundwave looked at Starscream, who put his finger to his lip components, and the Tapedeck gave a small nod._

 _Megatron: "I guess you could say I had no idea HOW to do drugs and that's why I got addicted. I dunno…but, but, it's no excuse, Soundwave. It's no excuse, because what I did to him was unforgivable. I know he'll never speak to me again; I'll probably never see him again. I've not only cost myself the best chance I had at personal happiness, I've cost the Decepticons someone that would have made an excellent Leader. He was a brilliant scientist, a superior tactician…did you ever see him fly, Soundwave? I mean REALLY, REALLY, see him fly? Not in battle but just on a lazy Sunday, y'know, with his siblings? He was so graceful…so beautiful…I never told him this, but, some days, I used to stand on the tarmac and just watch him fly. H-He'd make these big loops…speed up real fast and then slow down just before landing…sometimes, he'd just freefall out of the skies…I'd actually wonder if something bad had happened, but then, just before he'd hit the waters, he'd roar his engines and soar right back up into the air. It was really something to see, Soundwave, it was like, watching a dancer in the skies, like an opera or something."_

 _Starscream couldn't help but smile at that._

 _Megatron: "I'll never see him fly again now…"_

 _Soundwave: "Um, Megs…"_

 _Megatron: "I loved him so much, and I RUINED IT!"_

 _Starscream came in the room from behind._

 _Megatron: "I just wish I could tell him…that I'm so sorry. And beg for his forgiveness."_

 _Starscream ran up and hugged him from behind tightly, "Megatron!"_

 _The Decepticon Leader was stunned at first, not knowing if this was a delayed Dark Energon hallucination, "Starscream? What?" he turned to face him and then hugged him tightly._

" _I kept trying to call you," Soundwave laughed, getting up, "Thundercracker picked him up a couple of hours ago."_

 _Megatron, who had been so expressive with his thoughts just moments ago, was now at a loss for words. Instead, he just took his little Seeker into his arms, hugging him tightly and sobbing with relief; he couldn't have been happier._


End file.
